A charity shop manager’s long-term ambition to appear on the hit daytime show Come Dine With Me finally has become a reality.

Laura Jiménez will be on the nation’s television screens tomorrow afternoon (Thursday) when she takes part in the Channel Four programme.

As the episode has not yet been aired she is unable to talk openly about what happened – or if she won the £1,000 prize – but she did tell the Times it was a fantastic experience.

Laura said: “Come Dine With Me is one of those programmes that I have watched a lot over the years and thought once I have a big enough house I’d like to go and do.”

The move to Portishead from Bedfordshire helped to make that dream a reality.

The hectic filming schedule took Laura a bit by surprise and saw her entertain three other diners, as well as travel to Bristol and Wells to enjoy the cooking delights made by her fellow contestants.

She said: “It was a very intense experience.

“It’s shot over one week so it is quite intense with the menu reveals at DoubleTree by Hilton, Cadbury House and then the taxi picks you up at 4.30pm each day.”

However, she said the show lived up to expectations.

Laura said: “It was great. We all got on well with each other and have already met up again since filming.”

Laura, who works as a shop manager at the PDSA charity store in Portishead, hopes the sight of the town on television helps to put it in the limelight.

She said: “It was quite an eye-opening experience as you expect it to be like it is on television.

“For instance, it is quite surprising some of the questions they ask you.

“But I am really glad I went on it.

“Hopefully it puts Portishead on the map and raises the profile of the charity.”

It is second brush with fame for Portishead in as many weeks after it appeared in an episode of Location, Location, Location, although some controversy was caused on social media when the town was described as a ‘suburb of Bristol’.

The show’s producers also won few fans in Clevedon, by labelling it ‘Cleveden’ on its map.